Robber Gets 45 Years For Hammer Attack

When Alan Jania, 24, was introduced to a friend`s father recently at a party, he shifted a drink to his left hand so he could extend his right.

But the seemingly simple act turned into an embarrassing moment.

``My left hand just couldn`t hold the drink, and I spilled it all over myself,`` Jania said in court Tuesday.

That side of his body remains weak more than a year after he was struck on the head at least four times with a hammer wielded by Enzio Martinez, 20, before Martinez and a companion stole Jania`s car.

The attack occurred after Martinez, of Aurora, responded to a newspaper ad Jania had placed offering the car for sale.

Martinez was arrested early the following morning and later pleaded guilty to attempted murder and armed robbery. On Tuesday, he was sentenced to 45 years in prison by Du Page County Associate Judge Eugene Wojcik.

Jania said in a victim-impact statement in court that he was hospitalized for 10 days in Edward Hospital, Naperville, then spent 40 days as an inpatient at Marianjoy Rehabilitation Center, Wheaton, and was an outpatient there for 10 more weeks.

In addition to the general weakness on the left side of his body, Jania said he still takes medication to control seizures and that doctors are attempting to diagnose the cause of severe headaches he still suffers.

``A few weeks ago I invited some friends over to play cards,`` he told the court. ``I found I couldn`t shuffle the deck. I can`t pay tolls on the toll road with my left hand. I have to stop my car at exactly the right place and hand over the money with my right hand.

``Memories of the attack still haunt me daily,`` he said.

Jania, who is a salesman for his family`s business, Diamond Envelope Co., 1650 Shore Road, Naperville, had placed the newspaper ad to sell his car in November 1991.

According to accounts provided by both men, Martinez telephoned Jania and arranged to test drive the car on Nov. 30. He called back the following day, a Saturday, and agreed to buy the car for $7,200 at a meeting that afternoon at the envelope company office.

Jania said he met Martinez, who was accompanied by Baylor Balcum, of Aurora, around 6 p.m., and they walked to a loading dock area where the car was parked.

Jania said that when he stepped in front of Martinez to unlock the car,

``I didn`t know if (Martinez) was still there, so I played dead for a while. I heard the phone ringing over and over.`` A few minutes later, he said, he started shouting for help, and his cries were finally heard by his father.

Martinez and Bolcum were arrested as they drove in Jania`s car early the following morning in Hillside.

Bolcum pleaded guilty earlier to armed robbery and attempted murder charges, and was sentenced to 15 years in prison after evidence indicated he was unaware Martinez intended to rob Jania.

Assistant Du Page County State`s Attorneys Joseph Birkett and Craig Chval asked Wojcik to impose an 80-year term on Martinez, while his lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Theodore Gailan, argued for a lesser sentence because his client`s actions were influenced by drug use.

Martinez, who was previously convicted of burglary, said in a statement before being sentenced, ``First of all I want Mr. Jania to hear from me that I am very sorry for what I have done. I know that doesn`t take away the pain. If I had been in a normal state of mind this never would have happened.``